The oldest Jewish home in America open to the public as a museum offers a glimpse of the life of an early 19th century merchant family. More about the house

About the Library

With an extensive collection of more than 106,000 rare and unique volumes relating to the history of art, the Jean Outland Chrysler Art Library is one of the most significant art libraries in the South. More about the library

A state-of-art facility on the Museum’s campus. See a free glassmaking demo Tuesdays–Sunday at noon. Like what you see? Take a class with us! More about the Studio

Moses Myers House

The home of the first permanent Jewish residents of Norfolk, this historic house offers a glimpse of the life of a wealthy early 19th-century merchant family.More about the house

Jean Outland Chrysler Library

With an extensive collection of more than 106,000 rare and unique volumes relating to the history of art, the Jean Outland Chrysler Library is one of the most significant art libraries in the South. More about the Library

The oldest Jewish home in America open to the public as a museum offers a glimpse of the life of an early 19th century merchant family. More about the house

About the Library

With an extensive collection of more than 106,000 rare and unique volumes relating to the history of art, the Jean Outland Chrysler Art Library is one of the most significant art libraries in the South. More about the library

A state-of-art facility on the Museum’s campus. See a free glassmaking demo Tuesdays–Sunday at noon. Like what you see? Take a class with us! More about the Studio

Moses Myers House

The home of the first permanent Jewish residents of Norfolk, this historic house offers a glimpse of the life of a wealthy early 19th-century merchant family.More about the house

Jean Outland Chrysler Library

With an extensive collection of more than 106,000 rare and unique volumes relating to the history of art, the Jean Outland Chrysler Library is one of the most significant art libraries in the South. More about the Library

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Edvard Munch and the Cycle of Life

On View

February 28, 2020 — September 6, 2020

Located in

Special Exhibition Gallery

Edvard Munch’s The Frieze of Life is the point of departure for this first-ever exhibition dedicated to Edvard Munch at the Chrysler Museum. The autobiographical cycle of images captures how pain and healing are a part of life for Munch, who suffered an unusual amount of early trauma and vulnerability.

Edvard Munch and the Cycle of Life: Prints from the National Gallery of Art will explore how Munch actively and theatrically created his artistic persona around his experiences. It will also highlight Munch’s intense engagement with bohemian circles and the art world in Paris and Berlin.

Tragedy struck Munch’s family repeatedly in his early years. He suffered an accidental shooting in an episode that eerily parallel’s Vincent van Gogh’s attempted suicide, in which he severely injured his hand during a lover’s quarrel. Berlin and Paris offered an escape from the sites of his traumas and failures as did his remote villa in Norway.

In 1908, Munch suffered a psychological collapse. He sought dramatic treatment from Dr. Jacobsen, a physician who became a trusted friend, and even submitted himself to electroshock therapy. He then repeated the explorations and themes of TheFrieze of Life in Alpha and Omega, an even more extreme cycle of 1908 lithographs directly tied to his therapy.

Alpha and Omega is rarely studied or considered in exhibitions, perhaps because of the difficulty of the subject matter. Rooted in his own trauma, the project is told as a story with biblical themes and connections to classical myths of his childhood and education. Munch used these stories to understand his experiences.

His prints, like his life, include trauma and reveal their vulnerabilities in an effort to heal and avoid hiding behind illusions.